Sound louder in one channel turntable problem

Hello,


Just bought an ex dem Project Debut III SB Phono. It sounds good to my ears for a budget source component.

BUT there is an imbalance in the two channels and the right channel is always louder than the left which is more noticeable depending on the record I am playing.

I have read a few posts on the internet about this but have not really found anything conclusive.

I have adjusted the counter weight, anti skate weight, azimuth and the angle of the cartridge and tried different combinations of settings but the imbalance always appears.

If i change the phono leads in my preamp around then the imbalance switches to the other side proving to me that my pre and power amps are fine plus my CD player plays fine on my system.

Does the above narrow this down to either the cartridge or the phono stage?

This is the first turntable I have owned so its more than possible I am missing something obvious though having messed with the setup in different combinations as well as the recommended manual setup the imbalance is unaffected.


Many thanks in advance for any advice...

 

Hi...have you checked the cartridge connectors/pins, proper position, good condition, solid...etc ?

 

Probably a cartridge fault but to isolate this, at the back of the cartridge swap over the red and green wires, and also the blue and white wires. If the imbalance moves then you have a faulty cartridge.

If the imbalance remains, you either have wiring fault or problem with the phono stage.

 

Thanks. I shall try swapping the wires.

I checked the conections at the back of the cartridge an they all seem solidly connected and in good condition. I dont think the turntable has had much use at all before I got it.

Is this a common problem with turntables?

 

check tracking weight ..again ? and also anti skate ....one channel can sound louder if the bias is out of kilter ...though not a huge ammount. If after you have checked these swap left anf right feed to the amp and see if the imbalance follows if does not, its in the amps phono section